A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to agriculture, and in particular to determining plant population and spacing for row crops.
B. Problems in the Ark
Maximum yields from row crops can be related to maximizing uniform distribution of the plants. Therefore, it is of interest to find out plant distribution for planted fields.
Row-crop planters generally are able to crudely control plant spacing. After-the-fact plant spacing measurement can provide information regarding faulty or mis-calibrated planters. It can also provide information regarding problems caused by particular soil conditions or pests.
The only widely used post-emergence plant spacing measurement system is manual in nature. A ruler or tape measure (or other measuring standard) is manually placed between succeeding plants in a row. Besides the obvious burdensome nature of this procedure to gain enough information to get an accurate picture of plant spacing and plant population, inaccuracy problems exist. Also, it requires essentially pen and paper calculations to derive estimates of plant population and spacing variability. Still further, it cannot provide immediate information. Additionally, storage and retrieval of the final calculations are difficult.
There is a real need in the art, therefore, for a way to improve over the present method of measuring plant spacing and calculating plant population.
It is therefore a principle object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method which improves over and resolves the problems and deficiencies in the art.
Other objects of the present invention are:
1. An automated system of plant spacing measurement and plant population determination. PA1 2. An automated way to calculate and record plant spacing, plant population, and plant spacing variability. PA1 3. An almost real-time ability to calculate and record the above data. PA1 4. Improved accuracy in recording the data and making the determinations. PA1 5. An easy to use, economical apparatus and method. PA1 6. The ability to store and recall the data.
It will be appreciated that additional objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more apparent with reference to the specification and claims.